Pages

Wednesday, 22 May 2013

Badami Murg Shorba (Chicken in Almond Sauce)

So
I have been meaning to post this for a long time but somehow it got
forgotten amongst other day to day chores. Elaborate recipes like this
need the right kind of mood and a good occasion to go with it. I had
made this one last December for ushering in the New year and then I
again made it last week simply to celebrate the onset of pre-monsoons.
Such a rich recipe can only be had when the weather
cools down a bit. And this year we had a very hot and humid summer in
Pune – totally unsuitable for any dish that was heavy on the stomach.

After
such a scorching summer I felt as elated as a peacock when I saw the
first drops of pre-monsoon hitting my office window. Only I didn’t
have a ornate tail to spread and show off my happiness (poor me!).
Nonetheless, me and a couple of my colleagues rushed to the parking lot
to feel the rain on our face. The smell of the wet earth is so
tantalizing that it makes you forget all the summer ordeals.
We stood there by the balcony staring at the rain. People were
scurrying around trying to hide themselves behind the shade of a tree or
a tea stall. Some less fortunate who were on bikes were letting
themselves soak in the rain. The Gulmohar tree in our office
premises had suddenly started looking all bright and clean- red flowers swaying in the rain. The mercury
had gone down considerably and a pleasant breeze had replaced the
searing summer wind. Time for celebration and planning our first getaway
to enjoy the beautiful monsoons.

Such a nice weather demands gastronomic celebration as well. My heart was set on
Khichudi and begun bhaja (khichdi and fried Aubergine), the very
typical way for a Bengali to celebrate a rainy evening. But I saw some
chicken in the freezer languishing from a couple of days. So racked up
my brain and recreated this rich and decadent
almond based curry of the Mughlai origin. Anything Mughlai has a
royalty feel to it, same applies to this recipe as well.

I
am a glutton when it comes to some of my favorite recipes. So who is
not? Anyone who cooks surely loves their meats and vegetables not to
mention their sweets. It’s another thing whether they accumulate the
calories like me or not. I really envy those gourmet chefs who are known
to cook up a storm in their kitchen and yet look like they haven’t
eaten in years. For normal people like you and
me, an extra bowl of delectable kheer or an elaborate seafood platter
means extra hours of working out to avoid piling up of good-for-nothing
calories.

Since
I am not a housewife I do not have the time to pick and choose recipes
and then go shopping for the ingredients. Most of the ingredients
that goes into making anything special is always available at my home
which I usually pick up during bi-weekly trips to the super markets.
Last time my mom and mother-in-law visited our place they gasped at the
variety of spices and other ingredients present
at our home and tagged it as over indulgence. But anything for good
food and photography. And for patrons of good cooking.

It
always makes you happy when someone appreciates your dishes. But it’s
an honor when someone says that they are going to showcase your
creations
to the masses. While I was working on an endless presentation one day I
received an email which was from a lady named Arnie kaye dillen who wanted to share some of my works on her company facebook pages( www.wikichicken.com, www.gourmetrecipe.com etc). I was going crazy with
work and I wasn’t sure whether this was some sort
of a spam mail or not, so it was simply forgotten with time.
But soon after a couple of days I got a sweet “gentle reminder” mail
from the same lady asking whether I had received her earlier mail. That was a reality check. Someone really was interested in my food. I felt a sudden adrenaline rush, somewhat jittery and a lot more ecstatic. I quickly responded back with an apology of not responding first. Arnie is a very very sweet person, she published my recipe and even sent me a link of the same. The saga still continues. I remain to be the procrastinator as always putting the blame on my workload and Arnie patiently bears with me and sends me mails, invites, requests followed by those sweet little gentle reminders after which my guilt starts to buildup and overpower me and I quickly do the needful :). I hope this beautiful association will continue for a long time. This special chicken recipe is dedicated to this very sweet lady.

1. Clean and cut theChicken. In
a bowl take the chicken and add all the ingredients mentioned under
marinade. Mix well and leave it overnight in the refrigerator.

2. Fry the dicedpotatoand
keep aside.

3. Lightly toast the skinned almonds. Let the almonds cool down and make a thick paste of
almonds and ¼ cup milk. Keep aside.

4. Make a paste of the
onion and
green chilli.

5. Take a mortar and pestle and coarsely grind all the
spices mentioned under tempering except bay
leaf (the spices become more fragrant by grinding)

6. Take a heavy bottomed pan (kadhai) and add the ghee/oil . When the oil is hot enough add the
ground spices and
bay leaf. Toss them for a few minutes until
fragrant

7. Add the
onion-chilli paste to the spices. Add a pinch
of salt and
sugar.
The salt will help in softening the
onion faster and the sugar will caramelize in the heat and give a nice
color to the onions. Sauté until the onion is soft and takes a golden
brown color. The oil will also separate at this stage.

8. Add the
ginger-garlic paste at this stage and let
it cook for 5 more minutes

9. Add the
chicken
from the marinade and lather it well
with the spice mix of the pan. Let it cook for a while taking care to
brown the chicken slightly on all slides. Keep tossing the chicken
around to get a uniform browning.

10. At this stage add the
marinade
to the chicken and fold in. Add a
cup of warm water to it. Using warm water instead of normal water
enhances the taste of the gravy. Mix well. Cover and let it to cook for
10-15 minutes on medium flame.

11. When the chicken is almost half cooked add the soaked
raisins and let it cook till chicken is tender.
Add some sugar at this stage if you want
your gravy to be on the sweeter side. I usually prefer a balanced taste not too sweet not too salty.

12. Add the diced potatoes and let it cook. (adding potatoes is optional)

13. If you are planning to add
charmagaz or
cashew paste add it once the chicken is cooked
and oil floats up. Let it cook for another 3-4 minutes.

Serve
the preparation in a bowl and garnish with fried almond pieces,
coriander twigs and cream.
You can add a dollop of butter to this if you wish. Naan, roti or
basmati rice anything will go well with the chicken. I prepared Zafrani pulav as an accompaniment.

Note: This gravy is supposed to get its color from the fried onions and is a turmeric less recipe.

ShareThis

Translate

About Me

Folks, welcome to this small corner of the world which is my kitchen. I am a Bengali which by default makes me a certified connoisseur of food, but most of the time in kitchen I follow my own rules. Being poor at remembering the recipes I end up experimenting a lot with my food and still manage to keep it edible.

I am a software engineer by profession and a writer at heart. I love photography and travelling. Creativity is my forte. I hate being stereotype, so this space won’t be just limited to food ideas and recipes, but a lot more about the day to day unnoticed stories that goes into making that signature dish of yours. My blog is a humble attempt to present our culinary heritage to one and all and document traditional recipes which gets passed on through generations just by word of mouth.